There used to be a splintered spot in the Morris household that stood in mute testimony to Eric Morris’ competitive streak.

His dad finally grew tired of looking at the evidence.

“We remodeled our house three years ago, and I finally replaced the bedroom door where him and his older brother got in a fight in a game played at the house,’’ Ray Morris said. “He swung and missed and put a hole in the bedroom door.’’

Ray Morris doesn’t remember the particulars. It might have been over cards. It might have been as far back as Eric’s days in junior high. But the will to win, no matter the game, remains unchanged.

Figuratively speaking, neither side swung and missed when Texas Tech invested a scholarship in Morris four years ago, taking a chance on a little guy from a little town. The former Shallowater standout got a starting job at inside receiver at the beginning of last season. In the 21 games since, he has 117 receptions for 1,219 yards and 13 touchdowns.

This from a player who, at 5-foot-8 and 169 pounds, might be as small as any position player in the Big 12 Conference.

No one really expected that type of production, not even the dad who fixed the door.

“When he first signed, I didn’t know if he could play at that level,’’ said Ray Morris, who coaches the boys basketball team and wide receivers in football at Shallowater. “I thought it was terrific that they scholarshipped him and stuff. He’s always sort of had a chip on his shoulder about being small and wanting to prove everybody wrong. That was even in high school. It doesn’t matter if we were playing cards or dominoes or on a game field somewhere, he was always determined to win.’’

Morris starred at whatever he did in high school — as a receiver, return man and quarterback in football and as a high-scoring guard who hit the winning shot in a state-championship basketball game.

Morris has played as if he thinks there’s no difference between Class 2A and Division I.

“The biggest thing for him is he thinks he’s the best player on the field,’’ Tech inside receivers coach Lincoln Riley said. “He’s always believed in himself, kind of like Wes (Welker) did. Is he the best player on the field? No, not really. But they have that confidence in themselves and always believed they were going to make the play.

“He wasn’t a guy that just wanted to get the scholarship. He came here intending on playing.’’

Tech’s “H’’ inside receiver has to come off the field in two-back sets. That can be when the Raiders insert a blocking back such as Ryan Hale or opt to play Baron Batch and Shannon Woods at the same time.

“He gets mad when we get in a two-back formation, if we get in a span where we run (the formation) two or three plays in a row,’’ Riley said. “He’ll be mad, because he’s the one that comes out of the game.’’

Morris can make a case for why he shouldn’t spend too much time on the sideline. Of his 17 career touchdowns, 11 have come in Big 12 games. He has scored at least one TD against eight of Tech’s 11 Big 12 opponents. He’s scored three touchdowns in his last two games against this week’s opponent, Texas.

Tech coach Mike Leach said Morris isn’t bashful about asking for the football.

“He’s a little campaigner,’’ Leach said. “Does he campaign for plays? Absolutely.’’

The Raiders have kept Morris busy lately, and he’s come through. On Oct. 11, he scored what proved to be the winning touchdown in a 37-31 overtime victory against Nebraska, taking a handoff and racing for the corner of the end zone.

“He was kind of delighted when we called it,’’ Leach said.

In Saturday’s 63-21 win at Kansas, Morris scored twice on short passes. The plays were a lot alike. Morris caught the ball short of the goal line and darted for the front corner of the end zone. Each time, he got the pylon and a touchdown signal. Both were reviewed by replay officials, who decided that he stayed in bounds both times.

Same stuff he used to do in Shallowater.

“I was sort of kidding the guys today at workout,’’ Ray Morris said. “We do a little sideline drill where you drag your feet and stretch out to the pylon. I said, ‘See, guys? These drills pay off.’’